


Star Rise, Star Fall

by SilverKitsune



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Hoshimeguri AU, Like you don't even have to squint that hard, Oops I updated and now it's even shippier than before, You can totally read this as Carnelian/Lazu if you want to
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-17
Updated: 2018-11-18
Packaged: 2019-08-24 17:05:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16644269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverKitsune/pseuds/SilverKitsune
Summary: History tells of King Carnelian who gathered all 6 Star Gem fragments to make his wish, leaving a trail of death and destruction in his quest to gather them. But history is written by the victors and survivors. Here are the moments lost to the depths of time of a king who wished for a better world and his trusted attendant.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since not too many people are writing for Alba . . . I decided to take a go at it myself rofl. This entire thing is based on [this](https://twitter.com/sakaimii/status/1058551389616402432) set of translations for the backstory between Carnelian and Lazu and inspired by the [artwork](https://twitter.com/iD7Mng_Ogami/status/1063343507581001728) for Carnelian's card. Since we still don't have the full event story yet, I chose to base Carnelian and Lazu on the usual dynamic between Tales of Well Intentioned Extremist Villains and their One True Friend In Life. (See: Richard and Asbel, Gaius and Wingul) So if this reads really really shippy, that's why, lol. The flash forward in the end was also inspired in part by MCU!Thanos, so I think that should say plenty on how the Major Character Death tag got used here, rofl.
> 
> Also did this as a challenge to myself to keep it at roughly 500 words, so I'm hoping I managed to convey the feeling I wanted to.

He stood on the balcony, looking down at the city glittering below. Here, high above the streets, the capitol was a near-perfect reflection of the night sky above. The sparkling lights of the city below never went out – life on Alba was a life in near constant darkness. All he wanted was to lead his people into the light, to ease their suffering a little, to give them a life of harmony and happiness with the other planets. Was that too much to ask for?

A gentle breeze blew by, sending the bejeweled tassels on his clothes chiming against each other as the curtains cast fluttering shadows across the walls in the dim light.

Muffled boot steps echoed across the room, and for the first time during his silent watch, he smiled.

“Lazu, am I wrong for wanting this?”

“Never, Your Highness.”

He sighed. “Lazu, what did I say about addressing me in private?”

“That I may drop the titles,” he paused, “Carnelian.”

They fell silent as the usual morning chime rang out across the city from the bell tower. Together they stood, watching as lights flickered on in homes across the residential districts below. He had seen the way people lived on other planets, how the warm welcoming sunlight was the one to greet them in the morning instead of the cold empty darkness that blanketed so much of Alba.

A knock echoed across the room, and he waited, eyes never leaving the city below Lazu answered the door.

Carnelian closed his eyes to steady himself as he heard the all too familiar clanking of Lazu's armor as he knelt behind him. “The preparations are ready, the team and I await your command.”

He turned, reaching for the tie that held Lazu's half-mask, and letting it drop to the ground as he pulled it loose. Stretching out to cup his cheek, their gazes met for a moment before Carnelian answered, “Go. May the light guide your blade.”

Lazu stood, and Carnelian turned back to the city once more before quietly adding, “Don't die, Lazu.”

“I will never leave you alone, Carnelian,” was Lazu's answer as the door latched shut behind him.

* * *

 

In the end, it cost him nearly everything – his army, his people, his planet.

Even Lazu.

So many lives lost, so much destruction. But he had them now, all six fragments of the Star Gem. They glittered in the darkness as they encircled him, their multicolored glow casting a rainbow of lights across the throne room.

But he had them. And that was all that mattered. The rest could be fixed.

“I wish-”

A single kunai streaked out of the darkness, hitting his chest with pinpoint accuracy. But it was too late, the Gem had heard his wish, and as a brilliant white light encircled him, a single thought echoed in his mind:

_Lazu, did I do it right this time?_

His only answer was silence as everything faded into darkness.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extra bonus: Carnelian's "May the light guide your blade" is 100% meant to be a reference to Windor's motto "May the wind guide your blade" from Tales of Graces.
> 
> Also I can't believe I managed to kill off 1 character off screen and 1 character on screen in the space of roughly 500 words, but this is what happens when I decide to go take a go at writing a tragic villain lol. Depending on how I feel or what the event story feeds me I might expand on this more, but for now, it's meant to be a standalone one-shot.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I said I wasn't going to update until the event story dropped except I got inspired, because I'd think someone like Carnelian would have faced multiple assassination attempts throughout his life - before, as the "failure" of a Crown Prince within the royal family, and then later as a diplomat and king. Plus, it didn't seem fair to not give Lazu time to voice his thoughts, so here's something for him too!

A dash, and then there was a slight resistance against his sword as the body fell to the ground. He looked down at the would-be assassin, and the blood pooling on the stone floor around them.

“H-how . . . how could . . . you serve-” The rest of the sentence was cut off by a bloody gurgle as he plunged his sword into the assassin's chest, twisting it to ensure their death.

No one was ever going to harm Carnelian. Not while he drew breath.

_How could you serve such a cruel man?_

It was something he had been asked many times in his life – from would be assassins, to rival factions within Alba, to even the quiet whispers among the servants in the castle.

But there was a simple truth there – they hadn't been the one to comfort Carnelian while he was sick at the sight of the first would-be assassin gruesomely slain at his feet. They hadn't been there, watching him as he clawed his way up to establish his rule and consolidate his power with a council that barely acknowledged his successes and ridiculed him for his perceived failures.

They hadn't been the ones to see the lonely man beneath the mask, the one who only wanted to create a better life for his people, away from the shadows and the darkness that blanketed Alba and into the light that blessed the other planets.

The one who, once upon a time, wrote a simple wish onto a lantern at the yearly Festival of Light – _I wish for a friend_.

The door opened a crack, and he turned to spot a sleepy pair of orange eyes blinking back at him. “Lazu . . .?”

“It's nothing, Your Highness. I've taken care of the problem.”

He watched as Carnelian coldly flicked his eyes to the rapidly cooling body, then back to him, warm gratitude in his eyes. “Thank you, Lazu. As always.”

He simply nodded, noting how the young king no longer seemed disturbed by the death and assassination attempts that seemed to hound them at every turn, even on Alba.

The door clicked shut, and Lazu resumed his silent sentry. There wouldn't be another attempt on Carnelian's life, not tonight, but Lazu was never one to abandon a task before he saw it all the way through.

Not while he drew breath.

 


End file.
